Fred Olsen Express has issued an "apology" to all travelers who have been affected by delays on the new route connecting Arrecife with Gran Canaria, which were publicly criticized this Monday by the first vice president of the Cabildo, Manuel Cabrera. However, in its statement, it states that the problems were caused by "reasons totally beyond" the company's control, which "forced" it to restructure some of its lines, with the island of Lanzarote being especially affected by cancellations and delays.
In addition, Fred Olsen states that on Monday night, this was compounded by "the impossibility of operating in the port of Los Mármoles (Arrecife) until the early hours of the morning, due to the strong swell and southern currents in the port, which forced them to remain in the vicinity until conditions at the dock allowed them to operate."
Regarding what happened over the weekend, Fred Olsen states that on Saturday it was "forced to stop" one of its ships "in order to carry out its mandatory annual dry dock inspection on the morning of Sunday the 21st." "This inspection was scheduled during the dry dock on Monday, November 5, but for various reasons it had to be brought forward to this weekend, the communication of which on Friday did not allow for any other reaction than affecting different lines,"
Invites those affected to travel again "free of charge"
However, Fred Olsen emphasizes that "thanks to the Maritime Authority of the province of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, the Classification Society DNV-GL, and the Astican shipyard, the dry dock inspection was carried out in record time on Sunday morning, taking the ship out of the water and, once inspected, returning it to the sea to incorporate it into its usual route." On the other hand, the company indicates that it is maintaining the ship's dry dock according to the schedule planned for November 5, "thus maintaining its schedules and minimizing the negative impact that the past change of programming has caused to the users of Lanzarote."
Likewise, Fred Olsen points out that it is contacting the travelers affected on this route with Lanzarote to convey "personally" its apologies "and invite them to travel again free of charge, so that they can enjoy the service that is really being provided on this route since its inception" and that on this occasion it has not been able to offer "due to causes beyond its control," according to the company, which points out that it continues "working to offer its customers the best service on board."
